'Clumsy and reckless': Wallabies defend Darcy Swain after six-week ban for cleanout

The ACT Brumbies lock will miss three Tests and an Australia A tour of Japan, but he will be free to join the Wallabies squad for three of the five matches in Europe at the end of the year.

Wallabies coach Dave Rennie jumped to Swain's defence on Thursday, revealing the 25-year-old tracked down a number for Quinn Tupaea to apologise for the resulting injuries.

The All Blacks were fuming Tupaea was ruled out for months with an MCL tear, and a partial ACL tear.

But Rennie pointed to an unpunished incident involving Wallabies prop Scott Sio, who has been ruled out of the Bledisloe Cup on Saturday after injuring his hamstring in similar cleanout in the same game last week.

"[Swain] then made contact with [Tupaea] through, I think it was Tyrel Lomax who gave him the number to try and contact them," he said.

"I hear they're fuming, I mean we're not that excited about Fletcher Newell's clean out on Scott Sio which leaves him out for three weeks. And he doesn't get cited or carded during the game.

"As part of our defence we used that, [we] mentioned that he should have been cited as well. So look, we're not happy, neither's Darcy, he's not happy with the action and not happy with the result, but it's not malicious.

"He's been punished and six weeks is a hefty punishment, I reckon, and obviously fitting but ... Fletcher Newell gets to live another day."

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The ban imposed by Sanzaar rules Swain out until November 6, meaning he will miss Tests against Scotland and France before becoming available for selection for the clash against Italy on November 13.

Given the greater flexibility this year, compared to the last two with COVID-19 travel restrictions impacting squad choice, Swain is a possibility to be called into the Wallabies for the last three games.

The ACT Brumbies lock was named in the Australia A side destined for Japan, but rumours Rugby Australia did so in case a per game, not per week, punishment were handed down were brushed aside by Rennie.

He said Swain was only a young lock in his second year of Test rugby, and the Wallabies were keen to get him more minutes before their spring tour.

"It was clumsy and reckless, there's no malice in that," Rennie said.

"We highlighted what he was trying to do, and used a couple of examples from the game and one was a good one where Sam Whitelock cleared out in similar fashion to Darcy but did that accurately and effectively.

"The other one we used was Fletcher Newell's, where very similar to Darc, he's landed on Scott Sio's leg and he's done a hammy based on it.

"In the end you can't use it as a defence but we're just highlight that fact that we've got one incident that's been picked up, punished on field and off field and another example that's been glossed over."

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